First Baby Gorillas Born at Bronx Zoo in Nearly a Decade

THE BRONX — Two bouncing baby western lowland gorillas — members of a critically endangered species — were born over the past two months at the Bronx Zoo, officials said Thursday. These were the first gorilla births at the zoo in nearly a decade.

Julia, 33, gave birth on March 10 and Tuti, 19, had hers on April 17. Both babies, whose sex has yet to be determined, weighed between 4 and 5 pounds each, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Both females have given birth before, but their father Ernie, 31, is a first-time poppa.

Depending on their sex, the primates could grow to 6 feet in height and weigh as much as 450 pounds.

The babies join the rest of the gorilla troop at the zoo's Congo Gorilla Forest, a 6.5-acre enclosure that also includes mandrills, okapis and other animals native to Central African rainforests.

Approximately 15 lowland gorillas, which eat fruit, plants and insects, have been born at the zoo since 1999, the zoo said. The last gorilla birth was in 2006.

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